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An Overview of U.S. Farms From USDA’s Economic Research Service

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service (ERS) recently released its annual brochure exploring characteristics of America’s farms. Today’s update highlights a few of the key findings from the ERS brochure.

More narrowly with respect to commodity production, the ERS update indicated that:

Large-scale family farms accounted for over two-thirds of dairy production and over half of high-value crops like fruits and vegetables.

Midsize and large-scale family farms dominate cotton production (85 percent), with large-scale farms contributing over half of production and midsize farms an additional one-third. Midsize and large-scale family farms both accounted for over one-third of total cash grain/soybean production (for a combined total of 72 percent).

Burn and MacDonald also pointed out that, “In 2017, net farm income for the sector declined almost 40 percent from its peak in 2013, though it was only slightly below its 10-year average. Midsize, large, and very large farms had substantial declines in the share of farms with an operating profit margin (OPM) in the green zone between 2013 and 2017. Lower commodity prices worsened the OPM of many midsize, large, and very large farms, especially those that produced field crops (e.g., corn, soybeans, wheat) or dairy.”

With respect to how farms are legally organized, the ERS update stated that:

The vast majority of family farms (89 percent) are operated as sole proprietorships owned by a single individual or family, and they account for 59 percent of the value of production.

While addressing government payments and crop insurance, Burn and MacDonald indicated that, “Crop commodity program payments are targeted at current or historical production of specific crops and generally reflect acreage in crops historically eligible for support. Seventy-five percent of these payments went to moderate-sales, midsize, and large family farms in 2017, which historically have produced the largest share of program crops; in 2017, they accounted for 79 percent of acres in program crops. Commodity program payments are limited to $125,000 annually per person or legal entity.”

In summary, the ERS update reminded readers that, “Farming is still overwhelmingly a family business. Ninety-eight percent of U.S. farms are family farms, and they account for 87 percent of farm production.”

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